Gears 5 Operation 6 Summary: Tour of Duty, bundles, store items, character unlocks, Horde, Hive, and Versus Control

With each new operation that arrives in Gears 5, content normally comes out in abundance, but at the start of Operation 6, some players are wondering should there be more? Even though there are always future updates that can add more, some of the Gears community feel there is a lack of content. 

Despite what has already been released, a huge influx of players are sure to fill up the servers. Everybody will be looking to complete the Tour of Duty, earn rewards, compete in the new ranked season and try out the new Versus, Horde and Hive modes. 

Operation 6 Tour of Duty Key Information

• Duration: 11 weeks
• Total earnable coins from Tour of Duty and Medal completions: 83,250 Coins
• Earnable Iron from Tour of Duty: 500
• Ranked game types: King of the Hill, Team Deathmatch, 2v2 Gnashers, Free for all
• Earnable character skins: Locust Hybrid, Collector’s Zealot, UIR Elite Drone, Hivebuster Fahz, Captain Hoffman, Blood Red Queen Reyna
• Earnable weapon sets: Full Jigsaw weapon set, Full Iridescent weapon set, Full Commendation weapon set 
• Earnable Mark, Bloodspray and Expressions: Embry star, Gas Bloodspray, Peace Expression, Gunslinger Expression

(Picture: The Coalition)

Bundle Items, Store Items and Price

Below states every item included in Operation 6 bundle collection, costs at time of publication in the marketplace were £12.99/$14.99.

• Characters: Armored Hoffman, Queen Reyna, Locust Zealot
• Weapon set: High Tea weapon skin set
• Mark, Bloodspray and Banner: Fallen Soldiers banner, Reyna’s Hairpin mark, GOTCHA spray
• Iron: 700 Iron
• Boost: 30 Days of boost  

Weekly and Featured Store Items with current costs

Currently, most of the Items from Operation 6 bundle can be purchased separately in the Weekly section of the store with Iron. No information thus far has been released on whether these items will be purchasable with coins. 

In order to retain players, more content through weekly store updates will arrive. With TC already announcing “Drop 2” arriving in April, players are already wondering what could be next for the game, and what new content they will be sticking their teeth into next month.   

Weekly New Items

(Picture: The Coalition)

• Armoured Hoffman: 250 Iron
• Queen Reyna: 250 Iron
• Locust Zealot: 250 Iron
• Zealot Helmet Mark: 65 Iron
• U Mad Bloodspray: 250 Iron

Featured Store Items

(Picture: The Coalition)

• Collector’s Minh: 250 Iron or 2,000 Coins
• Vold RAAM: 250 Iron or 2,000 Coins
• Ghost Legacy Set: 850 Iron or 6,800 Coins
• Rock, Paper, Scissors Expression: 300 Iron or 2,400 Coins

New Featured Hive, Horde event, Versus Control, New Map and Drop 2 Information

Featured Hive: Venom Run

(Picture: The Coalition)

The first featured Hive in Operation 6 is named Venom Run, which by description encourages you to fight less and run more. New enemies will be fun to mow down, but taking too much enjoyment in that past time could cost you dearly. A new Hive will be introduced next Tuesday which is sure to be as challenging as the current one.   

There have been issues experienced by players over the course of the previous operation. Some players have been receiving the same Hive repeatedly across short periods of time. To resolve that issue, changes in rotation made by TC ensures the same Hive will not be seen twice for at least 14 days. 

New Horde Event: Escape From Mount Kadar

(Credit: The Coalition)

The new Horde event will feature for two weeks, and will make you and your squad faceoff against Locusts enemies for the first time in Gears 5. 10 relentless waves that increase in difficulty, including enemies such as Locust Hybrids, Sires, Matriarch, and more will be deployed to stop you in your tracks. 

After a playthrough, this event has some replayability as enemies come thick and fast. With games lasting on average less than 45 minutes, this version of Horde is ideal for those looking for a quick, but enjoyable fix of locust slaying action. 

Versus Control, information and ruleset

(Credit: The Coalition)

Versus players have been pushing for fresh content and new ways to play together. The start of Operation 6 brings a new versus mode to the table named Control. This King of the Hill/ Blitz hybrid is meant to encourage gunfights and more aggressive playstyles. The carnage should increase, as players will be spawning individually with low respawn timers meaning the action rarely ceases. 

Key notes for Control

• Ring 2.5x times bigger than KOTH 
• Earn points by staying inside the ring
• Individual respawn timers set to 5 seconds
• Rounds to win 1
• Round score limit set to 250

New map Speyer

(Picture: The Coalition)

In what is another revamped map, Operation 6 brings back Speyer. This map made its first appearance back in Gears of War 4, and was commonly known for its up-close battles in mid, and last stand fights around each team's fountain area. 

The map itself provides a mass array of cover, which forces players to utilise movement, reaction shots and active reload lancer fire. Versus Control is my favoured game mode on this map, especially when you deploy a smoke, reload the shotgun and start firing at anything that moves. 

Drop 2 Mid-April Content

(Picture: The Coalition)

Another update is coming out Mid-April, leading the community to speculate on what is coming next. At this point, we already know that at least one map, two new characters, new skins and more will be introduced. Additionally, we understand each week will result in store content rotating and new patches will be released.

In conclusion, when looking at this update, it should be enough to last five weeks until Drop 2. Control, Escape and Horde all bring a nice rounded multiplayer experience together. With the new base characters only being available through Iron or real monetary purchases, it is disappointing, but the alternative character skins definitely suffice. 

• Read More: Xbox Game Pass and Ultimate free game March 2021

Be sure to check out this week's patch notes that came out alongside Operation 6. When patch notes are revealed, updates come out and news occurs, we will keep you up to date.